Deputy Public Defender Tal Klement speaks with client Manuel Jesus Amador, who is accused of kidnapping and raping a 74-year-old woman, as he is arraigned at the Hall of Justice on Thursday, May 23, 2019. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)

Man accused of raping 74-year-old pleads not guilty

A man accused of forcing an elderly woman into his home and sexually assaulting her for hours earlier this month in San Francisco’s Crocker-Amazon neighborhood pleaded not guilty to his charges Thursday in court.

Manuel Amador, 47, has been charged with rape, kidnapping, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by a foreign object, and sodomy for the May 10 assault that left the 74-year-old victim with serious injuries.

The victim underwent surgery and she’s currently recovering at a hospital, San Francisco District Attorney’s Office spokesman Max Szabo said following Amador’s arraignment.

If convicted of all charges, Amador faces life in prison, Szabo said.

“These are incredibly serious charges, some of the most serious in the criminal justice system and this is one of the most heinous cases we’ve ever seen,” he said.

Amador, who is being represented by the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office, remains in custody and is being held without bail.

According to court documents, the victim went for her morning walk at about 8 a.m. and as she walked down the 1000 block of Prague Street, Amador grabbed her and dragged her toward his home’s driveway.

Although the victim tried to pull away, Amador allegedly continued to drag her into a side door near the home’s garage. Once inside, a pit bull belonging to Amador’s roommate bit the victim several times on her feet, ankle and hip, according to court documents.

Although she continued to fight back, Amador was allegedly able to drag her into a room, lock the door and push her onto a bed. He then pulled off her clothes, held her down and repeatedly raped her, court documents allege.

Amador allegedly kept the victim in the room for four to five hours. At one point he also choked her, causing her to lose consciousness for 30 minutes. After the ordeal, Amador allegedly dressed the victim and dragged her back onto the streets, leaving her without her cellphone, keys, underwear and shoes, according to the court documents.

A passerby saw the injured victim on the sidewalk and called 911.

She was taken to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital.

After officers arrested Amador at his home last Friday, he allegedly admitted to raping the victim during a Mirandized interview, court documents said.

Amador, a Honduran citizen, has no previous convictions, according to court documents. He’s due back in court on June 12.